Economy & Labor

For Gulf Coast Tourist Businesses, Spring Break Is A Mixed Bag

KUT 90.5 | By David D. Brown,

Michael Marks | The Texas Standard, David Brown

Published March 14, 2018 at 12:38 PM CDT

JosÃ© Lopez, one of the co-owners at Gordos American Eats in Corpus Christi, Texas

Spring break is a time to relax and get away for vacationers, but it’s a make or break season for businesses along the Gulf Coast. And that’s especially so this year, as the region tries to rebound from Hurricane Harvey. So we at the Texas Standard made a few calls. We asked a basic question – how’s business?

Quentin with Moby Dick’s in Port Aransas gives spring break a B+:

“We’re not too bad right now…nothing crazy. The beaches were pretty packed the other day. But a lot of the restaurants are still rebuilding and trying to get up and running to how they were before.”

Gracie’s Gift Shop in Galveston is too busy to talk:

“Well, we’re slammed at the moment.”

Sea Shell Inn in Corpus Christi is doing well:

“We have been pretty much full for the past five days. “

Cheryl Cuzco owns Cheryl’s By the Bay in Rockport. It’s open for business, but she’s a realist about the town’s long recovery:

“…By this time you would see children up and down Fulton Beach Road and it’s not there.

I did well after the storm. I was the first one to open up the doors.

We were blown to kingdom come. You can’t bounce back…People thought we could just be back in a few months. Too many rules, too many regulations. It’s not gonna happen.”